Woman Attacked By Jaguar Insists Zoo Should Improve Safety

On Mar 12, 2019 50

CBS News/Adam Wilkerson/Twitter

A woman who was attacked by a jaguar after invading the space by its enclosure is insisting the zoo should improve its safety.

The woman, who has been identified only as Leanne, was at Wildlife World Zoo in Arizona on Saturday (March 9) when she leaned over a four foot wide barrier which was supposed to separate the public from the wild animal’s cage, in order to take a selfie with the jaguar.

The animal clearly wasn’t happy about being disturbed and swiped at Leanne through the fence, lacerating her arm.

An eye-witness caught graphic footage of the aftermath, showing the wounds:

GRAPHIC VIDEO: Woman attacked by a jaguar at @ZooWildlife … officials say, the woman crossed over a barrier to get a photo. I’ll have more at 9 and 10.

Though severe, the injuries were not life threatening, and Leanne has since spoken out about the scary experience.

Explaining why she attempted to get up close and personal with the feline, Leanne told CBS News:

The black jaguars was up against the fence and we happened to be walking by and we said, ‘Hey let’s get some good pictures’.

The American woman admitted she was in the wrong, but still believes the zoo should move the jaguar’s cage further away from the barrier as an extra safety measure – presumably for the people who ignore the restrictions already in place.

CBS News report the same jaguar injured another person, Jeff Allan, last summer. Jeff received several stitches and said the zoo put its barrier too close, but zoo officials maintain the rules weren’t followed.